I recently went to China for the first time. While I was in Hangzhou, I bought a small amount of Bi Luo Chun, and although I have heard stories of Westerners getting ripped off by shady tea dealers, I couldn't simply return from China without any tea at all.

So I opened the packet this morning. The dry leaves smelled like not much at all, though I remember them being fragrant in the store. However, after the first steeping, the tea and the wet leaves both carried a very distinct smell of... cigarette smoke I gave the leaves a few more steepings, hoping the, uh, aroma would wear off, but no luck so far.

I hate that! My customers smoke like chimneys! I cannot ask them to stop, because that is just not done in China and I would lose them as customers. So, I keep all my green, white, and wulong teas stored in freezers in sealed bags, so they will not be smoke inpregnated. That smell just does not go away once it gets into the tea.